Vinny had once speculated that, as higher-dimensional beings, the Demon Pillars possessed wisdom far beyond humanity’s. Their motives and calculations were surely beyond the understanding of insignificant mortals.

For as long as anyone could remember, Demon Pillars had been regarded as evil and fallen. It was a fixed stereotype in the public mind. Quite a few had even landed themselves a secure, lifelong role in fairy tales: the ultimate villain lurking behind the scenes.

Demon Pillars were said to be the source of all evil. Yet few people stopped to ask why they committed evil in the first place. Why were they always wreaking havoc across the Tyrelis Continent and throwing the whole world into chaos?

Why did the Demon Pillars covet this continent so relentlessly? Was there something here they desperately wanted?

Many scholars had studied those questions. Countless theories had been proposed, but no answer had ever convinced everyone.

Still, not every Demon Pillar was quite so bad. There were exceptions—such as Nahidagon, the Demon Pillar of divination and displacement.

“According to the Church’s chronicles, Nahidagon has not had much of a presence on the Tyrelis Continent,” Amisha said. “But every time it has appeared, its actions have had positive results. On several occasions, it guided events that had been heading in a disastrous direction back onto the right path.”

“That is why many people across different countries worship Nahidagon. They believe it is a benevolent god that guides the lost—one of the few kind Demon Pillars.”

“A kind Demon Pillar?” Vinny frowned. It was the first time he had heard of such a thing. He turned to Luna. “What do you think, Luna?”

“My opinion?” Luna said. “I do not know whether Nahidagon is kind. But I do not think it acts in order to help anyone. I think it is pursuing some purpose of its own, and its actions merely happen to benefit humanity indirectly.”

“My view is that Demon Pillars are neither a pack of murderous lunatics nor madmen driven by a desire for destruction. Of course, they are not benevolent beings devoted to doing good, either.”

“They care only about their own objectives. To higher-dimensional beings like them, human lives are as insignificant as dried grass beneath the blazing sun—much like how humans never stop to consider how many ants they crush underfoot.”

“Why would your ancestor’s discarded research notes mention Nahidagon’s Original Sin Mirror?” Vinny asked. “Does it have anything to do with the double-moon phenomenon? Or with that theory that every mirror is an entrance?”

“I do not know yet. The draft notes are incomplete. When we sorted through them, we found the phrase ‘Nahidagon’s Original Sin Mirror’ several times, but too much of the surrounding material was missing. The reconstructed sentences do not flow properly, and the context does not line up. Perhaps even Ancestor Aretot himself never managed to explain it clearly.” Luna sighed.

“Combined with the many theories about mirrors mentioned in his fragments, I began to wonder whether those theories were conclusions he had reached through experiments conducted beneath the double moons. We no longer know what those experiments actually involved, but there is a reasonable chance that mirrors were part of them.”

“Of course, that is only my speculation. There are plenty of legends about mirrors, but most have been passed down since ancient times and are little more than nonsense. If every mirror truly connected to another world, that would be a tremendous problem. Nearly every household has a mirror, yet no one has ever heard of someone vanishing halfway through looking into one.” Luna smiled. “Still, a prudent person does not stand beneath a crumbling wall. It may be overly cautious, but today I had every mirror covered with black cloth.”

“Ah... Then, just in case, should I cover the mirrors at home with black cloth too?” Fennia swallowed.

“Pfft. I thought Miss Fennia was not afraid at all.” Luna rested her head on one hand, amusement clear in her eyes.

“W-Well, that is true, but...”

“All right, there is no need for everyone to panic. What I did was probably overly cautious.” Luna took a light sip of tea. “If looking into mirrors during the double-moon phenomenon were truly dangerous, mirrors are found in nearly every home. The double moons have appeared many times throughout Tyrelis’s history, yet no one has ever heard of anyone undergoing some bizarre change or disappearing just because they looked into a mirror that night.”

“It is simply that Ancestor Aretot’s journal repeatedly mentioned the unusual nature of mirrors. Covering them with a layer of cloth is hardly difficult. And if there really is a problem, merely covering a mirror would not be enough to avoid it anyway.”

“That... does seem true.” Fennia scratched her head, then pouted as though she had just realized Luna had tricked her again. “Lady Luna, you were not teasing me again just now, were you?”

“Hehe. Do I really seem that fond of teasing people in Miss Fennia’s eyes?” Luna’s lips curved into a faint smile.

“Gulp. Everyone always likes teasing me,” Fennia muttered.

“All right. That is essentially everything I wished to tell Your Eminence. I have already sent people to continue searching for more of Ancestor Aretot’s discarded notes, and specialists are working to reconstruct the missing portions. I will notify you if we discover anything new.”

“Mm. Huh? That is all? All right. I understand.” Vinny replied somewhat mechanically. He picked up the fruit juice Luna had prepared for him and took a sip.

“Your Eminence.”

Vinny remained seated, slowly setting the cup down before lifting it again to hold in both hands. At last, Luna called out to him.

“Mm? What is it?”

“Your Eminence, will you be all right returning to the dorm alone?” Luna asked, a hint of teasing in her voice.

“What could possibly go wrong?”

“What could possibly go wrong on campus? I have walked that road more times than I can count.” Vinny could not help protesting.

“Would you like Fennia and Amisha to walk you back?” Luna suggested.

“There is no need. Do you really think I was frightened by a few nonsensical mirror stories?” Vinny said, sounding deeply dissatisfied. “This young master simply thinks this fruit juice tastes good and does not want to waste it. I just want to drink a little more before leaving and finish it if I can. Is that not allowed?”

“Mhm, of course. Your Eminence’s admirable spirit of thrift has been conveyed to us very clearly,” Luna said teasingly.

“But does Your Eminence truly not need us to escort you?”

“I said there is no need. It is not like I am scared, all right?” Vinny rolled his eyes at Luna. “They are just a few inconsequential ghost stories. How could they frighten me? Demon Pillars, Demon Pillar cultists, the demon race—which of those is not far more frightening than things no one can see, touch, or even prove exist?”

“I was overthinking things. Since Your Eminence is not afraid at all, then let us leave it at that.”

“You three should be careful on your way home, though. Do not scare yourselves.” Vinny raised a brow and stood. “All right, then. I will wait for your news. I am heading back now.”

“Okay. See you later, Your Eminence.” Luna rose to her feet.

“Mm. I will be going, then.” Vinny glanced at Fennia and Amisha.

To avoid unnecessary trouble, Fennia and Amisha usually left through another exit. Vinny, on the other hand, was openly known to enjoy playing cards, so he could leave through the front without having to hide anything.

“Be careful on your way back, Your Eminence,” Amisha reminded him.

“Mm. You too.” Vinny stood, drained the fruit juice in one go, said goodbye to the three of them, and headed upstairs.

When he reached the basement entrance, Vinny pulled down the chain attached to the hidden door. It slowly opened.

The room beyond was empty. After closing the hidden door behind him, Vinny put on an unconcerned expression and walked out.

“Mr. Vinny, did you enjoy yourself today?” the cyan-haired girl with glasses asked from behind the counter.

“Mm. This young master had a wonderful time.” Vinny gave her a slight nod, then stepped out through the shop’s front door.

By then, night had fallen completely.

After walking for a while, the wind from the woods brushed across his face. Vinny looked up—and his eyes widened.

There were two moons in the sky.

The pair of colossal celestial bodies pressed down on him with a suffocating sense of oppression. It felt as though a meteorite were about to strike the planet beneath his feet—like watching it tear through the atmosphere and grow larger and larger, while knowing there was nowhere to run, no way to leave the planet, and nothing to do but wait for death.

To Vinny, the two moons seemed to occupy more than half the sky.

Was that not far too large?

Or were the moons drawing closer and closer to the Tyrelis Continent?

It was the first time Vinny had ever seen such bizarre celestial bodies. If he had not known that this strange phenomenon was considered neither an omen of fortune nor disaster, he might have thought the world was ending and some outer god was about to invade the Tyrelis Continent.

The unsettling sight came not only from the existence of two moons, but from the color of the second one.

High in the pitch-black heavens, one moon was the usual pale gold—the familiar moon people knew. The other, however, was blue-green.

It was the first time many people had ever seen a celestial body of that color in the sky.

A sight like this had been impossible to witness on Blue Star in his previous life.

Hm? Why does the wind smell like flowers?

No. On a closer sniff, something about it felt off. It smelled more like some kind of alchemical potion.

Vinny furrowed his brow. The scent was extremely subtle. Most people would probably take it for nothing more than floral fragrance, but he had studied alchemy. He was no complete novice, either; he had been practicing for a year and a half.

With enough materials, he could now reliably produce many basic alchemical potions of acceptable quality.

He had spent enough time in the alchemy laboratory to recognize it. Vinny keenly detected that floral fragrance had been mixed into some kind of alchemical medicine to conceal its true smell.

“Can you see the twisted, warped path you are on?”

Vinny froze.

Just as he was considering the scent, an empty, ethereal voice drifted through the air like a sigh torn loose from the abyss.

“Who said that?” Having encountered something so strange immediately after leaving, Vinny’s nerves tightened at once.

No answer came.

Only gusts of wind swept through the trees, rustling the leaves.

The wind slipped through hollows in the trunks and gave off a wail like the howl of a vengeful spirit.

Had he heard wrong?

Vinny looked back and realized that, without noticing, he could no longer see the card room’s sign.

When had he walked this far?

He turned forward again. The familiar academy campus was unusually quiet tonight.

Strange. Why was there not a single person around?

Two eerie moons hung in the sky, yet no one was out watching them. Everyone seemed more willing to stay inside. Besides, those two looming moons could be seen from every corner of the Academy. No matter where one went, there was no escaping the feeling of them pressing down from above.

Vinny walked alone through the streets. For some reason, the mana streetlamps lining the road seemed especially dim and sickly yellow tonight.

Click. Click.

As Vinny passed beneath one of the lamps, it flickered several times before going out.

Vinny’s expression shifted slightly as he looked at the extinguished mana streetlamp beside him.

Had the mana inside simply run out? Or had it malfunctioned?

He had walked this road countless times. Why did something this unusual have to happen tonight of all nights?

Vinny pressed a hand to his chest. Since earlier, he had felt a strange palpitation. His heartbeat had quickened, and the blood throughout his body seemed to churn with restless agitation, as though it might burst through his veins.

More precisely, it was the mana coursing through his blood.

Tonight, the mana within him felt unusually unstable. Unnaturally violent.

It resembled an animal’s instinctive sense of danger—a reaction before a massive earthquake struck.

Vinny recalled what Luna had said earlier. When the double moons descended, they might alter the bio-magnetic fields of living beings to a certain extent.

Most people might feel nothing at all, or only a slight discomfort. Everything might seem perfectly fine. Only a very small number would notice anything unusual.

Was this merely psychological? Was it caused by the double moons? Or had his intuition sensed something?

Vinny took several deep breaths and continued onward.

To return to the dorm, he had to pass through the commercial street ahead. Perhaps because it was late, or perhaps because tonight was unusual, every store on the commercial street had closed. Looking down the road, he saw one shuttered storefront after another. Not a single shop remained open.

Combined with the dim yellow mana streetlamps, the entire place looked bleak and steeped in deathly silence.

It reminded Vinny of scenes from ghost movies he had watched in his previous life: just such a night, just such an old street beneath sickly yellow streetlamps.

The commercial street was not old, of course. Normally, it was lively and fashionable. But in this atmosphere, it somehow looked ancient, still, and deserted.

Vinny swallowed.

Maybe letting them escort him would not have been such a bad idea.

What was he even thinking? Had Fennia’s ridiculous horror stories really frightened him?

He was the Camella Royal Capital’s notorious young master, whose very name could make three-year-olds stop crying. He had lived alone for so long in that old little building that resembled a castle. Why had he suddenly become afraid of ghosts and monsters?

What a joke.

Had Camella’s king of bright ideas ever been afraid of anyone? He feared neither heaven nor earth!

Should it not be the ghosts who were afraid of him? If one jumped out and saw that it was him, it should be so terrified that it fled for miles!

Vinny encouraged himself like that in his heart, only to suddenly spot a notice board at the entrance to the commercial street.

It had clearly not been there that morning.

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